


Overexposure

by Stormnightengale



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: Adventure, Developing Relationship, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Canon, pricefield
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-04
Updated: 2018-03-19
Packaged: 2018-08-12 22:38:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 17,199
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7951960
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stormnightengale/pseuds/Stormnightengale
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The storm is over, and Max and Chloe are left to deal with the aftermath. From the ruins of Arcadia Bay, to Seattle, to Portland, all they have to truly rely on is each other as they face a new blossoming romance, the return of Jefferson, and the far greater threat of time itself as everything slowly spins out of control.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Storm

**Author's Note:**

> Hey folks! I played Life is Strange a few weeks ago, and completely fell in love with the characters and the story. I've never been invested in a story like this, and as such this is my first time writing a fanfiction story. I'm starting with the last scene, and then going from there. I've played through the game multiple times, and am going to try to keep their characters as realistic as possible. That being said, they will change from the way they were in the game, simply because people change over time. I'm going to try and keep their speech accurate as well, and as such this is rated M for language, just a warning. Obviously spoilers for the entire game ahead!
> 
> EDIT: Hello readers! I have returned to Overexposure at long last. If you're new, welcome! If you're old, welcome back, thanks for sticking with me. I don't know how regularly I'll be updating, but I will be updating this once again. More details in the new chapter note, but thanks for your patience.
> 
> EDIT 2: I'm going to be posting production updates to my tumblr at stormhaven13.tumblr.com (along with other things I normally post) if you want to follow, feel free.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For this chapter/scene I'll be keeping mostly to the dialogue already in the game, but with a few changes. The most noticeable one is based off of a video I saw combining the two endings, and it felt much more satisfying. I also added in one line of cut dialogue that was in the audio files, and had to change a few others as they didn't quite fit with my interpretation. Over the course of the story I'll be switching between Max and Chloe's perspectives. Without further ado, let's jump right in!

Memories were rushing through her mind. The car. The lighthouse. American Rust. The school, the pool. The kiss. All seen, one by one, leaving tears in Max's eyes. " _Oh, my Chloe..._ " Max thought, as she watched herself tackle Chloe in a hug from behind. She even felt the rush of joy as she saw her alive again, "I _t feels like we've lived a thousand lives this week... I'd do anything just to wake up next to you._ " Max glanced away from Chloe sobbing over Rachel's body, feeling the agony of her friend's pain just as sharply as before, and looked toward the lighthouse, " _Maybe if I get there... This will all finally end._ "

Though her head was pounding, Max pushed herself up the hill, towards herself and Chloe. As she drew closer, she began to feel the storm battering at her, ripping at her clothes and skin, and she began to grow wet from the pouring rain, "C'mon Max, we're almost there," Max's heart ached at the concern in her best friend's voice, "Don't worry. We'll be okay," Max reached out to touch Chloe's shoulder, to tell her that she was here, it was okay, and suddenly she was falling to the ground, taking Chloe with her.

"Max? Max, can you hear me? Please, say something!" Max's head spun, and she tried to stand, but fell back on her heels. Her brain felt like a rubber band that had just been snapped. One second she was in the nightmare, seeing herself in the third person, and now...

"Chloe?" Max stammered, "I- I must have passed out. Sorry..." Her voice shook, as emotions, from love to joy to guilt to pain rushed through her.

Chloe moved closer to her, shaking her head, "Oh thank God. Don't you ever do that again okay?"

Max leaned heavily on Chloe as they helped each other to their feet, buffeted by the wind and rain, "I swear... But that nightmare was so real... So horrible..." Max took a few steps forward, and her nightmare faded to the back of her mind as she once again saw the nightmare in front of her. Her throat tightened as she took in the swirling tornado that roared over the water, heading straight towards Arcadia Bay, "This is my storm," Max shouted, "I caused this, I caused all of this. I changed fate and destiny so much that I actually did alter the course of... Everything!" Max's voice broke as she looked at Chloe, hoping for some sort of reassurance. Her face was filled with pain, and Max turned away, "And all I really created was just death and destruction."

Max felt Chloe turn her and she was suddenly looking into intense blue eyes, "Fuck all of that, okay?" Chloe said forcefully, "You were given a power, you didn't ask for it. And you saved me." Every time Max looked back at the storm, Chloe's voice somehow kept her grounded, "This had to happen, all of this did, except for what happened to Rachel. But without your power, we wouldn't have found her! Okay, so you're not the goddamn Time Master," Max looked down, her cheeks flaming, "But you're Maxine Caulfield," at this, Chloe grabbed Max by the shoulders, and forced her to lock eyes, "And you're amazing."

A little warmth spread through Max at this, "After all of this... Chloe still thinks-" Then she looked back at the storm, and all warmth drained from her instantly. She couldn't take her eyes from it, the enormous twister nearly breaking her ears. "This... This is all my fault."

Chloe's voice, broken beyond belief, roused her from her reverie, "Max... This is the only way." Max turned to her, and saw her holding a photo of a blue butterfly.

Numbly, Max reached out, and took the picture from Chloe's shaking hand, "I feel like I took this shot a thousand years ago..." To her, as she stared at the photo, everything almost seemed miles away. She heard faint voices, and knew that if she focused they would grow louder, and sweep her away from here.

"You... You could use that photo," Chloe's voice shook even more than her hands had, "to change everything back to when you took that picture," Understanding rushed through Max like a lightning bolt, but before she could protest Chloe continued, "All it would take is for me to... To..." Finally her voice broke, and she buried her head in her hands, shoulders shaking.

"Fuck that!" Max's heart broke seeing Chloe like this, but she pushed on, "No. No way. You are my number one priority now. You are all that matters to me." Max knew her words were rushed, blending together, but she didn't care. She wasn't losing Chloe, not again.

"I know," Chloe sobbed, the rain blending in with the tears on her face, "You've proved that over and over again, even though I don't deserve it." Chloe watched the storm draw nearer and nearer to Arcadia Bay, and her face became even more haunted, "I'm so selfish... Not like my mom." Chloe turned to Max, gesturing wildly, eyes sparkling with tears, "Look what she had to give up and live through. And she did. She deserves so much more than to be killed by a tornado in a fucking diner. Even my step d- My step father deserves her alive. There's so many more people in Arcadia Bay who should live, way more than me."

Max couldn't take anymore, and advanced on Chloe, her vision now blurring with tears, "Don't say that, I won't trade you!"

Before she could get too close, Chloe backed away, cutting her off, "You're not trading me! Maybe you've just been delaying my real destiny. Look at how many times I've almost died or actually died around you. Look at what's happened to Arcadia Bay ever since you first saved me," Unable to take the agony on Chloe's face any longer, Max turned toward the bay. The view didn't help.

She felt Chloe's gentle touch on her shoulder, and looked at her again, "I know I've been selfish, but for once I think I should accept my fate... Our fate..."

Desperate for her to listen, Max started, "Chloe-"

Once again, Chloe rushed over her, her words spilling out of her, "Max, you finally came back to me this week, and you did nothing but show me your love and friendship. You made me smile... And laugh... Like I haven't done in years." As Chloe kept going, her voice started breaking more and more, until she held onto Max, as if trying to stay anchored to something, "Wherever I end up after this, in whatever reality, all those moments between us were real, and they'll always be ours."

Max tried to escape her grip, trying to fight any piece of this idea, "Chloe, I can't make this choice!"

Chloe's grip tightened on her shoulders, "No, Max. You're the only one who can."

Max stared at Chloe, her entire self screaming at her to fight back, to rewind, to tell Chloe that she was insane, to do something! Tears were pouring down her face, as she tried to imagine a world without her best friend, without her... Chloe. She just stared, trying to take in every detail of Chloe's beautiful face, how her soaking wet hair framed it, bringing out her eyes even more than usual. Max's throat choked up, "Chloe... I- I can't do this!"

Chloe wrapped the smaller girl in a tight hug, and Max buried her head into Chloe's chest, "I know, Max. But we have to. We have to save everybody, okay?" Max just stood in the rain, with her best friend's arms around her, and desperately tried to think of a way out. Chloe seemed to already have chosen a path, and Max had no arguments left for her. Everything in her was screaming, roiling inside her with more strength than the storm, and Max had no idea how to release it.

Finally, the two girls broke apart, and Chloe forced Max to look into her eyes once more, "You'll make those fuckers pay for what they did to Rachel." Her voice grew soft again, but some of the pain was now etched with acceptance, which broke Max's heart even more, "Being together this week... It was the best farewell gift I could have hoped for. You- You're my hero, Max."

It all came to a peak. Seeing Chloe with everyone else, hearing the other Max throwing insults at her, watching all of those beautiful memories. All of Max's emotions came to a head, and before she could even think about what the hell she was doing, Max's hands were on Chloe's face and they were kissing again. Their tears mixed, mingled, and Max lost herself in Chloe. She forgot Jefferson, forgot the nightmare, even forgot the storm as she pressed herself against Chloe, trying to convey everything she was feeling into that one kiss.

After what seemed both instant and eternal, they broke apart, and the two girls stared at each other, tears pouring down both their faces. Though they had been quieted for a second, Max's emotions began to scream even louder, and she nearly broke down.

"I'll always love you..." Chloe sobbed, backing away "Now, get out of here, please! Do it before I freak." Max couldn't even bring herself to say a word, and just stared at her, unable to comprehend what was happening, "And Max Caulfield?" Chloe's voice was broken, but determined, "Don't you forget about me."

" _If I do this... She'll never know any of this happened..._ " Max thought numbly, " _She'll think she died alone... Unloved..._ " Her entire body began to shake, and she could barely hold the picture still enough to look at, " _But she isn't. I love her. I won't let her die alone._ "

"Max?" Chloe's voice broke her concentration, "It's time."

One last moment of steel entered Max. No. She wouldn't lose Chloe. "Not anymore." Max turned toward the storm, and tore the photo in half. The shot that had started it all. She watched the pieces fly into the storm, whirl away where she would never find them again. Her focus moved to the tornado, her tornado. Bearing down on Arcadia. Max bit her bottom lip, and she began shaking even more.

"Max..." Chloe. Stubborn, rebellious, wonderful Chloe, spoke from behind her in disbelief, "I'll always be with you."

Max nodded quietly, "Forever." Chloe reached down, and took her hand, and together they watched. Watched as the storm raged ahead. Began to tear apart their home. Tears blotted Max's vision, and she buried her head in Chloe's shoulder, looking for any support. She felt Chloe's strong arms wrap around her, and Max closed her eyes, sobs racking her entire body.

* * *

 

Chloe could only watch for so long. For awhile, she just held Max as she cried, but eventually it was too much for her as well. Chloe gently led Max through the storm, towards what always was their salvation: the lighthouse. She shook the handle, and scowled when she found it locked. She considered trying to break it down, then decided against it, " _Let's not risk anymore damage, to me or anything else._ "

Chloe glanced around, looking for any sort of cover, and finally saw the small shed. She gently pulled Max over to the door, and to her relief found it open. As she closed the door, the noise from the storm finally dulled. She could almost feel the little building shake, and hoped it would hold.

Chloe sunk to the ground, holding Max close to her as everything finally began to crash over her. One second she had been ready to finally be selfless, to sacrifice... everything. Now Max had taken that choice away from her, "Don't think like that, Price," Chloe scolded herself, " _Don't blame her when you would have done the exact same thing in her place,_ " Because that was the thing, wasn't it? If she had had to choose between Max and Arcadia Bay- Well, it wouldn't have been a choice.

Chloe absently stroked Max's hair, her mind a million miles away. Down in the diner, with her mom. In the police station with David. Who knew what they were going through down there. She felt Max wrap her arms around her body, pulling her close, and Chloe sighed, " _They're going to have to take care of themselves for now. Max and I... We need to take care of each other,_ " Chloe and Max held each other in silence, listening to the rain pound on the thin roof.

They both dozed intermittently, worn thin by the long day of emotions. They had been awake for nearly two days now, from the Dark Room, to finding Rachel, warning David about Jefferson, and now this.

At some point, hours later, Chloe woke to Max gently shaking her, "Chloe, wake up. I think... I think the storm's passed." Chloe groaned groggily, and sat up. Her head was still a little foggy from sleep, but she pushed herself up, then offered a hand to Max, who took it.

"C'mon then, Super Max. Let's go see..." Chloe broke off. What were they going to see? What was left?

Max seemed to understand what Chloe was thinking, and pulled her by the hand out the door. Clutching tightly at each others hands like lifelines, the two girls walked together to edge of the cliff. Chloe's breath caught in her throat as a great weight settled onto her chest.

Arcadia Bay had been devastated. Of course, Chloe had known it would be, but seeing it was a whole different matter, "Oh fuck. Shit, not like this." The buildings in the best state just had walls, with roofs ripped apart. The worst places had been wiped away, snatched from existance. While it was impossible to make out details from this far away, Chloe could tell it was bad. Horrible. Hell. There wasn't a word to describe it.

"Oh god," Max stuttered, "What... What have I done?"

Chloe swallowed hard, and squeezed her hand, "Don't do that, okay?" Her mind raced, trying to figure out some way to comfort her, but came up blank, "Look, I- I suck at the whole comforting bullshit." Chloe turned Max, and forced her to look her in the eye, "But this isn't your fault, got it?" Max's eyes glanced away, and Chloe shook her gently, "Got it?" Max sniffed and nodded, still not meeting Chloe's eyes. "Come on, Max. No use sitting on our asses up here, right?"

Chloe put her arm around Max's shoulder, and gently guided her down the hill, "Alright, now what?" Chloe glanced over at Max, who was staring straight ahead, a blank expression on her face, "Not gonna get any help there. Okay Chloe, what would Max do here?" She bit the inside of her cheek, and absently tapped on her leg, "No telling if the car is okay, but that's probably our best bet. I have to make sure Mom is okay."

Chloe and Max made their way slowly down the hill, having to avoid all sorts of debris. When they finally were at the bottom, Chloe steered Max toward the beach, "C'mon, we should check on the car. We can get to my house, check on my Mom."

Max shook her head, "She's not there, she was at the diner, with Frank and Warren." Chloe glanced at her in surprise, and Max shrugged, "I went by to get that photo Warren took. You know, at the party."

Chloe grimaced, "Oh yeah, that shitstorm. Well, I'm glad Super Max knows what to do." Chloe squeezed Max's shoulders, trying to forget last night. And yesterday. And everything, " _For once, try to be in the goddamn moment, Price._ " Step by stumbling step, Chloe and Max continued up the beach, back towards Arcadia Bay. Back towards the destruction.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey folks, thanks for reading! Please leave reviews, and keep reading more! I really appreciate it, and I hope you like Overexposure. For those of you who are curious, I will have all sorts of Pricefield stuff coming, but it won't be for several chapters, given how much trauma both Max and Chloe have gone through. For now, we're in the aftermath portion of the story. For those of you who are curious, here's the link to the edited Life is Strange ending: watch?v=RVBwecPZTCs. Thanks again for reading, and hope to hear from you with some constructive criticism!


	2. Aftermath

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey folks! So this chapter is a little shorter than my first one, but I finished it much earlier than I thought I would. I'm leaving canon a little in this one, as they're exploring the wreckage of the town. Without further ado, let's continue!

Max leaned heavily on Chloe as they stumbled through the ruins of the town. The car had miraculously survived with only minor scratches. They had found it lying under branches and leaves, and other junk blown by the storm. After clearing it off, the two of them drove off into Arcadia Bay until they reached a road that was too cluttered to drive over. After that, they continued on foot, stepping over rubble, light posts and skirting around the occasional body.

While Max didn't recognize most of them, every time she did she felt bile rise in the back of her throat. As they drew closer to the diner, she felt her chest tighten more and more. Warren, Joyce, Frank... They had to be okay. They had to.

Finally, Max began to recognize the destruction around her. The massive red semi that had tipped over, where she had saved the trucker. The road where she had stopped the metal sheet from hitting Evan. She glanced at the spot, then recoiled when she saw a broken form lying there.

"No..." Max muttered under her breath, "No that's- I saved him, it can't be him." Max broke away from Chloe and half ran half fell next to the body. Black pants, grey sweatshirt, scarf... It was Evan, no doubt about it. Max's eyes welled with tears, and she sat back, uncomprehending, "I saved you, I stopped this, this shouldn't-" Her words finally broke down, and Max was sobbing all over again, unable to take it all in.

She felt Chloe's arm wrap around her shoulders and Max buried her face in Chloe's shoulder, "Hey, it's alright. You can't save everyone, okay?"

Max shook her head, and managed to hold back her tears long enough to say, "No Chloe, I saved him, I remember! I saved him, and Alyssa and-" Her breath caught in her throat as she suddenly remembered the flash of heat and fire, the explosion, "Oh no." Max breathed, and pushed herself to her feet.

"What's up?" Chloe asked, standing up too.

Max didn't answer, and instead took off, avoiding all too familiar obstacles, ducking into the flame wrecked building, through the door, back onto the street. She saw the massive whale, but ignored it, instead staring at the diner. Or rather, what was left of the diner.

Whether it was the storm or the explosion, the diner had been completely wrecked. The Two Whales sign lay in pieces, scattered across the entryway. Frank's RV had crashed through one wall, and what looked like a fishing boat had caved in part of the roof. All around the building lay shards of glass, remnants of the windows before the explosion had rocked the diner.

"Oh shit," Chloe's voice barely registered in Max's brain as she sunk to her knees, "Goddammit, no!" Chloe hurried past her, and ducked out of sight under the broken Two Whales sign.

Max sat paralyzed, trying to wrap her mind around everything, " _I stopped the explosion, I remember it so clearly... Except I never did, I never came for Warren's photo. I went back and made Chloe go home, and then I never went into town._ " Max's body began shaking violently, and she buried her head in her hands.

Finally, Chloe emerged from the diner, her face wet, but hard. She knelt down in front of Max, and pulled her chin up, "Come on, we've gotta go Max."

"What- What did you-" Max stammered, but Chloe cut her off by hauling her to her feet.

"You don't want to know. Let's go." Chloe began forcefully pulling Max away, but she couldn't help looking back.

"Chloe, what-" Chloe stopped, and clenched her fists.

"A bunch of fucking bodies okay? I can't even recognize who they are, they're so badly burnt." Max's bile rose again, stronger than ever, and she nearly collapsed, but Chloe caught her, "You can't break down, not yet. We have to jet, okay?"

"Why? Where are we going?" Max said, trying to hold in her emotions.

"Hell if I know. Somewhere. Anywhere. We just can't stay here."

Max bit her lip, but nodded, and let Chloe lead her back towards the car. They dodged back in and out the way they came, everything blurring together. When they finally made it, they both just stared at the truck, hand in hand.

"So," Chloe said slowly, "Where to?"

Max thought for a minute, "My parents... They must be worried sick, I should-"

Chloe clapped her on the shoulder, "Seattle it is then. I'll get the car started." She climbed in the driver's seat, avoiding Max's eyes.

Ignoring the lump in her throat, Max pulled out her phone, and swore to herself. It was dead. She banged on the window, and waited for Chloe to open the door, "My phone's dead, can I borrow yours?" Chloe reached into her pocket, and tossed her phone to Max, "Thanks."

"Yep," Chloe muttered, fiddling with the radio. Max turned away, and dialed her parents' number. They picked up after two rings.

"Hello?" It was her mom, her voice tight and nervous.

"Mom? It's Max."

"Max? Oh thank god, are you okay?" Max's head spun as she heard the relief in her mother's voice.

"Yeah, I'm alright. Sorry I didn't answer my phone, it's dead. I'm using Chloe's."

"Let me go get your father, he'll be so relieved to hear you're okay."

Max nodded, then remembered that she was on the phone, "Okay, I'll be here."

Chloe rolled down the window, and her punk music blasted out, forcing her to shout over it, "Move your ass hippie, I wanna get on the road!"

"Turn down the music a little and I will, I'm still on the phone." Chloe sighed, and the music decreased drastically. Max hurried around to the passenger side, and hopped in. As she plugged in her seat belt, Max's parents came back.

"Max, you still there?" Her father's voice was just as tense as her mother's, and Max swallowed, wishing she had thought of this earlier.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm here."

* * *

 

Chloe forced herself not to think, and instead focused on the road ahead. She also tuned out Max's call with her parents, as it would bring up too much shit she didn't need right then.

" _You don't know she was in there,_ " Chloe thought, despite her efforts to stop herself, " _Things changed, Max doesn't know for sure anymore,_ " Still, her mind went back to the horror scene back at the diner. 3 bodies, burned beyond recognition. The dog was there too, no better than the others. She couldn't get the smell out of her head...

Chloe shook herself, and finally realized she had no clue where she was going. Eventually they were going to hit a crossroads. She nudged Max pointedly, "Hey, I need my phone for GPS. Finish up." Max gave her a thumbs up, and began saying her goodbyes.

"Here you go," Max offered her the phone, and Chloe grabbed it.

"What's your address?"

After that, they drove in silence for awhile, listening to the music. Chloe shifted in her seat uncomfortably, trying to think of something to say, " _I want to help her, but... How am I supposed to do that?_ "

It was Max that finally broke the silence, "Chloe... I- I'm so so sorry, I didn't want-" Her voice broke, but then she continued, "I loved Joyce, and I thought I saved her, and instead-"

Chloe pushed past the nagging voice in her head that had been saying the same thing, and said, "Fuck that. You didn't do this, okay?" Max looked down at her lap, and they both fell into silence.

" _Come on Price, think! You've dealt with this before, she hella needs your help now. You can deal with your own stupid feelings later._ "

Finally, she blurted out, "Look I know you're doing all that self blame shit. Just... It's not your fault, okay?" When Max didn't answer, Chloe glanced at her, and saw she was biting her lip, hard, "What?"

"I just- I don't want to argue."

Chloe took a deep breath, resisting her first impulse to immediately start arguing, and instead pulled Max's head to her shoulder, "Okay Maximus. Let's- Let's try it your way."

"A lot of good my way did us..." Max muttered, and Chloe sighed.

"Shut up, and trust me, okay?" Chloe said sharply, and Max nodded quietly, and relaxed into her. Before long, Chloe could feel Max's breathing slow, and glanced over at her, "Sleep well, Super Max." Chloe turned back to the road, and kept driving.

" _All I've gotta do is make it to Seattle. Then- Then we can finally deal with all of this_."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for still reading! Finally got a hella in, haha :) After this, they hit Seattle, and all of Chloe's bottled up feelings come to a head. I'm not sure when I'll get to Chapter 3, but it'll be soon I'd guess. Probably sometime this week. Also it will probably be longer, but no promises. I break where it feels natural. Anyway. Please review, please keep reading. Thanks all!


	3. Blame

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey folks! Sorry for being a few days late. School's just stared up again, so I am busy! This chapter is entirely from Chloe's point of view. I had intended to switch halfway through, but changed my mind. Don't want to give anything away, so I'll leave my reasons at the bottom. Enjoy!

The drive was taking way too long. With Max asleep on her shoulder, Chloe had nothing but music to distract her, and it wasn't doing it very well. Chloe's thoughts were a roiling mess, pushing this way and that, with no end in sight. She ended up talking to herself more often than not.

" _Come on, it's not fair to blame her for all of this!_ "

" _It wasn't fair of her to abandon me for five years. It wasn't fair of her to make that choice for me. I think she's got not fair more than covered for both of us._ "

" _She didn't ask for this anymore than I did! And you know what, now that I think of it, shut the hell up_!"

" _I wouldn't be saying it if you didn't think it. You're talking to yourself, remember?_ "

" _Fuck off._ "

" _Sorry sista, no can do. You're stuck with me._ "

After nearly an hour and a half of this, Chloe nudged Max with an elbow, "Yo, wake up hippie!" Max groaned, and buried her face in Chloe's shoulder, " _Wow, that's cute. But I need you right now Maxipad,_ " she thought, then said louder, "Max, wake the hell up!"

"What's going on?" Max asked sleepily, peering at Chloe through one eye.

"I dunno," Chloe said uncomfortably, "I just- Think maybe you've slept enough?"

Max gave her a little smile, "Someone get a little lonely?"

"Fuck no!" Chloe said, and winced at how loud and oh so obvious she sounded, "I'm fine, shut up!" Max's smile faded a little, and Chloe bit back another stream of curses.

" _Come on asshole, try to be a little sensitive!_ " she thought to herself irritably.

"Sorry," Chloe muttered out loud, "Scary punk asshole, right?"

Max gave her a quick hug, then sat up, "How long was I out?"

Chloe shrugged, and resisted the urge to check the clock, "Awhile. You sleep hard man."

Max glanced out her window, watching as the cityscape passed by, "Is this-"

"Portland," Chloe confirmed, "We finally made it. Not exactly how we thought we would but..." She trailed off, and Max glanced at her guiltily.

"Chloe, I-"

"Don't, okay? You're sorry, I get it. Hell of a lot of good it does my mom." Chloe swallowed hard, and they sat in uncomfortable silence for a few minutes. Finally, Chloe sighed, and said, "That was stupid. I know... Max I know this isn't your fault, I really do, but-"

"I know," Max said softly, "We all have bad habits we have to break," They rode in silence again as Chloe thought hard about what to say next.

Eventually, she pulled the car over, ignoring the questioning look Max gave her, "Okay, so my first instinct right now is to flip out at you cause I'm pissed, right?"

"Um-"

"Just, hang on okay? I have a point here." Chloe drummed on the wheel nervously, " _God, being high would make this so much easier,_ " she thought, then pushed on, "Look, I want to get mad, but I also know that that won't help you. So I'm just gonna, you know say what's on my mind. No filter."

Max raised her eyebrows, "Wow Chloe, that's so different from who you normally are. Have you been replaced by an alien or something?"

Chloe smacked her arm lightly, "Shut up! I'm trying to be serious, okay?" Max nodded, and gestured for her to continue. Chloe drummed harder on the wheel, focusing on not shouting, "Max, I- I was ready to finally do the right thing, to be selfless." Max opened her mouth, but Chloe plowed on, "I was finally going to not be a selfish bitch, and save everyone, but you had to go and be the fucking hero again. And now I'm left holding all this shit, my mom's probably dead, along with who knows how many people, and what am I supposed to do?" Chloe's voice had slowly risen until she was yelling, her hands gripping the wheel like a vice, her knuckles turning white. Chloe took a deep breath, trying to control herself, trying not to turn into a stupid blubbering mess. Finally, she mumbled, "Why did you stop me Max? Why didn't you let me save them?"

Chloe hadn't looked at Max the entire time, and when she glanced over she saw tears welling in her best friend's eyes. A twinge of guilt passed through her, but she pushed it aside, " _Sorry Max, I had to say it. I have to know,_ "

"Chloe, I'm so so sorry," Max stuttered, "I- I didn't want-"

"No, none of that bullshit right now, just tell me why! Why couldn't I be the hero for once, why couldn't I have just-"

"Because I love you, you idiot!" Max shouted, and Chloe shut up, "I love you, and I couldn't lose you again. I couldn't watch you die, again. And I sure as hell wasn't going to let you die before this week ever happened! You would've died thinking that- That-" Max broke down crying, burying her head in her hands.

" _Goddamn I'm a dick,_ " Chloe thought to herself, and put one arm around Max, pulling her head so it rested on her shoulder again.

"Fuck Max, I'm- I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"

Max pushed away, wiped her eyes, and looked fiercely at Chloe, "No, let me finish. I have to finish." Max took a shaky breath, "If you had died in that bathroom, you would have died at the worst time in your life. Nathan had just drugged you, Rachel was gone, and I-" Max closed her eyes briefly, but drove on, "I hadn't- We weren't best friends anymore. You would've died thinking no one loved you, and after everything we've been through this week-" Max's voice broke, and she clenched her teeth, and wiped her eyes again, "I couldn't let that happen. I'm sorry I chose for you Chloe, I really am, but I couldn't lose you, not again." She looked at her lap, then glanced up shyly at Chloe.

"Damn girl, emo much?" Chloe joked halfheartedly, her heart in her throat. Max glanced down again, but Chloe grabbed her hand, "Hey, come on. I'm sorry, okay? I didn't realize- I dunno, I just didn't think of it like that I guess." She squeezed Max's hand, "You know I would've made the same choice, right?"

Max looked up, her eyes wide and wet, "But your mom-"

"I know." Chloe said, glancing away, "But still, no question. Partners in time, remember?" Max nodded, and Chloe gave her a small smile, "So, obligatory hug time?"

Max let out a choked laugh, and nodded again, and the two girls hugged each other tight, "Love you Che," Max muttered in her ear.

Chloe's heart skipped a little, but she ignored it, "Love you too Super Max." They broke apart, and Chloe started the car, "Picking out some nicknames for me, huh?"

Max blushed a little, and shrugged, "I dunno. You just have so many for me, just seems right I guess." Chloe grinned a little at that, and hit the gas.

They spent the remainder of the drive chatting idly, and Chloe put way too much effort into trying to make Max laugh. She shamelessly made jokes, puns, innuendos and subtle hints to anything she could think of, trying desperately to keep their minds off of what they had left behind. Chloe didn't succeed often, but when she did she felt her heart swell a little.

When they had about an hour left, a thought began nagging at the back of Chloe's head. She wrinkled her nose in irritation, and tried to put it out of her mind.

"What is it?" Max asked, glancing nervously at Chloe.

"What's what?" she was going for nonchalant, but didn't entirely succeed.

Max gave her a pointed look, "Come on Chloe, I know you better than that. What's up?"

Chloe grunted in annoyance, "You sure your damn power portfolio didn't include mind reading?"

"Che-"

"Fine! You don't have to use your cute new nickname to guilt me into it, alright?" Max blushed a little, but motioned for her to continue, "I was just thinking... This last week was hella confusing, and I for one would like a clear story to tell your parents. Cause I have a feeling we should avoid the whole thing about, you know, bending time and space to your will."

Max shifted uncomfortably in her seat, "Chloe, about that..."

"What's on your mind, friend of mine?" Chloe winced, "Alright, even I have to apologize for that one."

Max didn't crack a smile, "Chloe, be serious."

"Well, Lupin, if you insist, I'll be Sirius. I'm certainly not Pettigrew."

"Chloe!"

"Fine, fine, what's going on?"

Max took a deep breath, then carefully said, "I can't use my power anymore."

Chloe looked at her in disbelief, "What? Come on, there's-"

Max cut her off, "Chloe, I'm not gonna argue you with you, not about this. After everything I caused, all the damage I did-" She broke off, and swallowed, "I can't risk it. We have no idea what we're messing with, and it's already messing back. It's only been a week, and look how much damaged my powers caused. No way, not again."

Chloe furrowed her brow, "But look how much good we've done too! We could-"

"Chloe, I said I'm not arguing with you. You were pissed I made the choice for you at the lighthouse, right?" Chloe nodded grudgingly, "It's my power. You have to let me choose."

After a minute, Chloe sighed, "You always said your power might not last."

Max smiled gently, "And you said?"

Chloe groaned, "You're really gonna make me say that sappy shit again?"

"Yes."

"I said we'd last forever." Max grinned victoriously, "Asshole." Chloe shoved her playfully, making the car swerve slightly off the road.

"Dude, watch the road rage!" Max said, laughing.

"I don't think either of us wants to watch the road rage. It could give us a flat, or just swallow us in a sinkhole." She glanced at Max hopefully, "Get it? Cause the road is the one raging?"

"Yes, I'm not that dumb!"

"I was just making sure," Chloe muttered.

"Anyway, I got us off topic." Max scooted forward in her seat, "The other thing about telling my parents is that-" Max swallowed nervously, her eyes glancing away from Chloe, "Things happened to me. In the Dark Room, and... Elsewhere, that didn't happen in this timeline.

Chloe scratched an itch on the back of her head absently, "Yeah. If I ever get my hands on Mark Jefferson, I swear-" she broke off, muttering various obscene things.

Max gave Chloe a grateful look, and gently took her hand, "But all that never happened in this timeline. So if David-" Max bit her lip, but continued, "If David ever talks to anyone about how he got Jefferson, our story sounds like bullshit.

"Yeah, assuming he's alive, what are the chances Step-spy is going to tell anyone anything?" Chloe said under her breath. When Max gave her an annoyed look, Chloe sighed, and said, "Yeah, yeah. I know he saved you. He's only 60% of a dickwad. So we don't tell them about Jefferson and you in the Dark Room or your powers."

"We may want to avoid the part about breaking into Blackwell too."

"Ah come on, I like that part!"

"Well I like the part where we aren't arrested for trespassing."

Chloe sighed, "Yeah, I guess I like that bit too."

They had driven for nearly another fifteen minutes, and were rapidly approaching the city limits. As they began up a hill, Max sat up excitedly, and smacked Chloe's arm, "Watch, you have to see this."

"I'm driving nerd! Would you rather me stare somewhere that's not the road? You want me to check you out or something?"

Max blushed, "Shut up! When we come over the rise, you'll be able to see the city. Trust me you wanna look."

"Max, I'm sure it's cool but-" They came over the hill, and Chloe caught her breath, "Holy shitballs."

The city was much bigger than Chloe had thought, a towering skyline amplified by the purple dusk behind it. Skyscrapers towered throughout the center of city, and Chloe could see what she assumed was the Space Needle's dome. It immediately drew her eye, and it took her a minute to pull her eyes from the glowing cityscape. When she did, she saw the dark finger of Puget Sound to the west, and the Olympic Mountains rising far above the city to the east.

"Yeah, that was kinda my reaction when I first saw the city," Max said quietly, "It really is beautiful."

"Ten bucks says I know what you said."

"Not taking that bet Price. No way."

"It was wowser, wasn't it?"

"No! Shut up!" Max's voice had risen an octave, and Chloe grinned.

"Got it in one." Chloe stared out at the city, "I've never seen anything like it. I mean, don't get me wrong, Portland was hella cool, but. Shit." She trailed off.

"Chloe Price, lost for words. I'll need to remember this moment." Max teased.

Without looking at her, Chloe flipped her off, "Take a picture, it'll last longer." Max's face instantly fell, and Chloe started swearing to herself, "What? What'd I say?"

Max shook her head, "Don't worry about it. Just. Haven't felt like taking any pictures since... You know."

Chloe sighed, and wrapped an arm around the smaller girl, "Hey, don't worry. You'll get through this. And if not, I'll find Jeffershit and punch him in the dick. Sound good?"

Max giggled a little, fighting back tears, and laid her head on Chloe's shoulder, "Yeah Chloe. Sounds good."

"Great!" Chloe said, sounding more chipper than she felt. Any reminder of Arcadia Bay tended to suck some of her energy. She slipped an arm around Max's shoulders, and squeezed, "Come on then. Let's go meet your parents."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had originally intended to switch perspectives after their argument, and have the chapter end with them meeting Max's parents, but I decided I really wanted to see Chloe's reaction to the Seattle skyline. It's a beautiful city, and other than Portland she's probably never been far from Arcadia Bay before. Like I said I had intended to bring Max's parents in this chapter, but this ending point seemed more natural. Up next: Max's parents, their house in Seattle and a reveal I am very much looking forward to. You might have some idea, but I doubt you'll see it all coming ;) I certainly hope not anyway, I'd hate to be becoming predictable! Anywho, I'm going to write this chapter over the course of this week. I have no classes Monday, so I'm making that my deadline. If I can, I'll post sooner (Maybe this weekend if I can swing it) but since I also have to edit, my guess is Monday. Please comment or leave a kudos if you like this story, review if you're so inclined, but most importantly keep reading! I appreciate it. Thanks muchly, and talk to you all later!


	4. Nightmare

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, I am really happy right now. Hey folks! I managed to finish this chapter way earlier than planned, and see no reason to make you wait. It's my longest yet, and I'm pretty happy with it. Hints of Pricefield ahead, we're getting there my lovely shippers. Let's dive in!

Chloe stood in front of the house, tapping her leg nervously. It wasn't as big as she'd expected, about the same size as her place was. Before it was probably blown to pieces. For some reason, Chloe had always thought of Max living in some kind of mansion, which had always made it a little easier to stay mad at her. This seemed so... Normal.

"Yo, Chloe!" Max called, standing by the door, "Come on, stop daydreaming." Chloe shook herself, and jogged up next to her.

"Sorry. Was just remembering something," Chloe explained, then opened the door.

"Don't you knock?" Max hissed.

"You live here nerd. You don't need to knock, and if you don't need to, I don't need to." Chloe stepped over the threshold, and shouted, "Hey, trouble's here!" She ignored Max lightly hitting her arm, and waited.

The scrape of chairs came from the kitchen, and Ryan and Vanessa Caulfield hurried into view. Chloe glanced down, her face burning, " _Oh man. I haven't seen them in five years, they've been scared shitless and I just barge in going 'Trouble's here'? What the fuck Price?_ " Max's parents went straight for her, and an awkward group hug soon ensued, while Chloe just stood there awkwardly, " _Fuck this._ " she thought, and cleared her throat, "I'm here too!" she said, trying to sound playful.

The tangle of Caulfields separated, and Chloe suddenly found herself being hugged tight by Vanessa, " _What the hell?_ "

"We're so glad you're alright too Chloe." Vanessa murmured in her ear, "We've been so worried about you two." Chloe felt an unexpected rush of emotion, and embraced her roughly.

Eventually, the two of them separated, and Chloe made sure her eyes were dry, before she was then being hugged briefly by Ryan, and while that was slightly more uncomfortable, she still secretly welcomed it.

"It's good to see you again Chloe," Ryan said, smiling through his thick beard, "When we moved, Max had hoped to see more of you, but... Well, life happened. I'm glad you and Max are together again, even in these terrible circumstances."

Chloe forced a cocky smile, "Me too. It's nice to run around being pirates again."

"You two must be exhausted, come in!" Vanessa exclaimed, "Get those shoes off, and Max can show you to the living room. Ryan will make you girls a snack, yes?"

"I'll get right on it," Ryan bustled back into the kitchen, and Chloe heard the fridge get opened before Max nudged her. She slipped out of her boots, and followed Max to a room with a dark blue couch in front of a small TV. They sat together, and leaned on each other, glad to be off the road.

"Ugh, my feet stink." Chloe complained. "One sec," She pulled off her socks, and then grabbed at Max's.

"Excuse you!" Max squeaked, "My feet are ticklish and don't appreciate your help!"

"Oh you're fine," Chloe ignored Max's restrained giggles, and pulled off Max's socks too, "See? Less stink. Also gives me a weapon if I need it."

"Should've known you weren't being chivalrous," Max muttered warily.

"Chivalry is for dead old guys. I'm much more fun."

Before Max could respond, Ryan came in, holding two plates with sandwiches, chips and fruit. Chloe snatched her sandwich, and began devouring it ravenously. Ryan raised an eyebrow, and Chloe resisted the urge to flip him off as a joke, "Hey, I haven't eaten since Portland, okay? That was like ten hours ago."

"Three." Max corrected, and took a piece of fruit.

Vanessa slipped in, and sat in an armchair next to Max, "I looked in the back of the truck, I didn't see any bags."

Chloe tried to swallow and answer in the same breath, and started choking. Max patted her back, and shook her head, "We left in a hurry. My stuff's still at Blackwell, assuming it's still standing. Chloe..."

Chloe slapped Max's arm away, "Dude, I don't need to be burped!" She looked at Vanessa, trying to seem nonchalant, "I didn't have any of my stuff with me, and I wasn't in the mood to go look for what's left of my house."

Vanessa nodded slowly, then said, "We've been watching the news pretty closely. There's a lot of people still missing, your parents included. Blackwell was mostly untouched, it was too far away from the town proper. But people have hope that they're going to find people. It's only been a day since the storm, and the damage wasn't as bad as they expected. Once the tornado hit land, it lost a lot of power."

"Max didn't tell you the details, did she?" Chloe interrupted, "The diner my mom worked in blew up. I went in, I found three bodies. My mom's not missing, she's dead." Chloe knew her voice was too harsh, but she didn't care. She sat on the edge of the couch, avoiding looking at anyone.

"Chloe, I-" Vanessa started, but Chloe jumped to her feet.

"Look, I just need some time to myself, okay?" She said suddenly, struggling to keep her voice controlled.

"Of course," Ryan stood and pointed down a hallway, "Max's room is right there, first door on the right." Without saying anything else, Chloe brushed past, and slipped into Max's room, closing the door behind her.

Max's style hadn't changed much. Chloe even recognized posters and pictures from her old room in Arcadia Bay. She walked over to her dresser, and picked up a picture frame. One photo was Max with a guy and a girl, standing in front of the Space Needle. A flicker of jealousy ran through her, " _So this is who Max hung out with when she went AWOL_."

She glanced at the other picture, and blinked. It was an old picture of the two of them, standing outside Chloe's house. Chloe's hair was still blonde back then, and she ran a hand through her blue punk style. The biggest change though was how happy the two of them looked, grinning brightly, not a care in the world.

It was all too much, and Chloe finally broke down, and sunk to the ground, clutching the picture to her chest, shoulders shaking silently. Chloe felt a hand on her shoulder, and she wiped at her eyes angrily, "I said I wanted to be left alone, alright?"

"Chloe, look at me." She did, and saw Max's blue eyes were shining with excitement, "You said you found three people, right?"

Chloe sniffed, "Yeah, and Frank's stupid dog."

Max gripped Chloe's shoulder's hard, "Chloe, there were four people when I was in the diner. Frank, Warren and Joyce were there, but there was some guy I never recognized, so I never mentioned him." Chloe's head spun, as she tried to process what Max was saying, "Something's different in this timeline Chloe. Something we did changed something, and it might have gotten Joyce out of that diner."

* * *

"Yes, I know, but I have an eighteen year old girl trying to find her mother right now!" Max could hear her mom in the other room, arguing with one emergency service or another. She'd been on the phone for almost an hour now, had called hospitals, the police, the fire department, with no luck. Max and Chloe lay together in Max's room, both trying to sleep, neither succeeding.

"Remind me again how you convinced your mom to keep calling?" Chloe whispered, her breath warm against Max's ear.

"I didn't really do anything Chloe!" Max sighed for the third time, "All I said was that we weren't sure Joyce was at the diner, and she grabbed the phone." Max glanced at the clock next to her bed, but instead ended up at the back of Chloe's head, "Hey, what time is it?"

"Time to get a watch."

"I have one. Your head is in the way."

"That's a clock, hippie. If you had a watch, my head wouldn't be a problem."

"Chloe..."

"It's a little past eleven. Happy?"

"Not particularly." Max rolled onto her back, and watched her fan spin around and around, blowing a gentle breeze through the room. Max blinked, and the breeze changed to wind that ripped at her clothes, the fan a swirling tornado, heading right toward her. "No!" Max screamed, and just as suddenly as it had come, the fan was now gently twirling above her.

"Max, what's wrong?" Chloe had sat up, and was looking at her with concern.

"I-" Max started, but a knock on the door cut her off, and Ryan stuck his head in, "You girls okay?"

"Yeah," Max said shakily, "Chloe just surprised me, poked me in the side. Sorry, Dad."

"Alright. You two should try and sleep, we'll wake you up if there's any news." With that, he waved goodnight, and closed the door.

"The hell Caulfield?"

"Hey, I took the blame for some weed for you, you can take a poke."

Chloe sighed, "Fine. What the hell was that though?"

"Nothing." Max said quickly, " _She'll just think I'm going crazy. Hell, I think I'm going a little crazy._ "

"Max, that was not nothing," Chloe said sternly, "Come on, you can tell me."

"I- Okay, fine. Just. Promise you won't think I'm crazy?"

Chloe rolled her eyes, "First of all, too late for that. Second, goddamn time travel powers remember? You got something to top that?"

"Oh." Max said, "I guess not."  
"Didn't think so. So come on Mad Max, spill!"

Max swallowed, trying not to literally spill her guts all over Chloe, her stomach rolling, "The fan. I looked at it, and it suddenly. I thought it was moving as fast as the tornado, I thought the wind was back, I thought-" Max broke down sobbing, and Chloe pulled her close, letting her cry on her shoulder.

"The fuck is going on with you Caulfield?" Max didn't answer, and she felt Chloe begin stroking her hair, "I mean you gain superpowers, kiss me, and now this?"

"You dared me to." Max sniffed into Chloe's shoulder.

"I meant-" Chloe started, then cut herself off, "Yeah. Yeah I guess I did."

Max didn't trust herself to speak. It was the closest either of them had come to mentioning the kiss on the cliff. Max had been struggling with it ever since it happened, but right now was not the time to deal with it. Instead, she burrowed into Chloe's shoulder, finally letting herself fall asleep in her best friend's arms.

Max woke to a bunch of blue hair in her mouth, " _Ugh, come on Chloe_ ," Max thought, and moved her head back. " _Oh, right. Sleeping."_ Max laid back against Chloe, enjoying how warm she was, " _You're a great big heater Price._ "

Her mind still groggy, Max's thoughts drifted back to the last time they had slept like that, after breaking into Blackwell. Then her thoughts drifted to that morning. Finding her picture on Chloe's phone. Chloe daring her to kiss her. Her face when Max actually followed through. Max snuggled a little closer, and she knew she was grinning like an idiot, " _Fuck, I'm hopeless._ " Max thought.

"Max! Chloe! Wake up!" Max jumped, banging her forehead into Chloe's chin.

"Fucking hell!" Chloe groaned, and pushed Max away from her, "What the actual fuck Caulfield?"

"Sorry..." Max muttered, " _Nice going, Max. Very romantic._

" _Really? You want to wake her up romantically?_

" _No! Shut up!"_

" _Alright, we're dealing with that later too._ " She rolled over, and looked up at Vanessa, who was holding her phone tightly.

"We found her. I've got Joyce on the phone." Vanessa said, and held out the phone for Chloe, who grabbed it, eyes wide with disbelief.

"Mom?" She asked, her voice shaking. Max heard Joyce's voice, muffled but recognizable against Chloe's ears, and she saw Chloe bite her lip, trying not to smile.

Max squeezed Chloe's hand, and whispered in her free ear, "I'll give you some privacy." Chloe smiled at her, an actual genuine smile, and Max hurried out of the room with her mom.

"Thank God she's okay," Vanessa said, collapsing into the armchair. Max sat on the couch, looking at the floor.

"Yeah. I- I don't know how I could have lived with it if she died." Max said quietly, and pulled her knees up to her chest.

Vanessa gave her a strange look, but nodded, "Chloe's been through much, and losing both parents- Well. It'll be alright.

" _Yeah, right._ " Max thought sarcastically, " _And everyone will magically be resurrected, and Chloe won't hate me for destroying her home._ " They sat in silence after that, waiting for Chloe to finish with her mom.

After about only fifteen minutes, Chloe emerged from Max's room. Max hurriedly stood, and walked over to her, "How is she?"

"About as good as you can expect." Chloe said tiredly, "When David went to arrest Jefferson, she decided to stay home, take care of us. Of course we ended up going out, thinking she was already gone." Chloe sighed, and drummed on the couch next to her, "David's still missing, and she's not going anywhere until they find him. The police station got hit pretty hard, and they're just going through the wreckage now. Personally, I think he might have headed back to the Dark Room, been a paranoid detective. Mom's gonna have them go check it out."

"What's the Dark Room?" Vanessa asked, glancing between the two girls. Max glanced nervously at Chloe. She hadn't told her parents anything about their adventures, or their personal involvement with Jefferson.

"We'll explain in the morning," Max said carefully, "It's a long story, and I don't think any of us are up for it right now."

Vanessa pursed her lips, but nodded, "Alright. I don't want to push, I can't even imagine what you two girls have been through."

" _You have no idea,_ " Max thought.

"But I do need to know what happened. I have a feeling it's serious."

"It is." Max said, "And we'll tell you all about it tomorrow."

"Agreed." Vanessa moved over to Max, and gave her a kiss on her forehead, then, to Chloe's evident surprise, did the same for her, "Good night girls. Sleep well."

"Come on," Max took Chloe's hand, and together they went back to bed. They settled in, and nestled together again, taking comfort in each others presence.

"Good night Super Max." Chloe said softly.

"Night Che. Sweet dreams."

* * *

Max stood in front of a stone tower, nearly thirty feet high. She looked around for Chloe, or her house, or anything familiar. Instead, she found herself standing in the middle of a forested graveyard, stretching as far as the eye could see. " _What the hell is going on? This doesn't feel like a dream._ " Then, a nasty similarity emerged from the back of her head, " _I said the same thing about my tornado vision. Fuck. Alright, I need to find some clues, figure out where I am_."

Max decided to start by examining the tower. It was surrounded by a black fence, which matched the door leading into the tower. Above it was a worn stone carving, and Max squinted, but could only make out four letters at the beginning: MACL. Above that was a dark glass window, but Max couldn't make out anything through it. She looked more closely at the door, and nearly yelped in shock.

A ghostly doe was standing in the entryway, blending in with the black metal. It was staring right at her, then turned, and disappeared straight through the door. Max hurried after it, opening a gate in the fence, then pulled the door open just enough to slip inside.

When the door creaked closed, Max realized there was no source of light in the tower. She glanced up to where she had been sure she had seen the window, but couldn't find even a hint of sunlight. Max pulled out her phone, using her screen as a flashlight, "Oh shit."

The floor had turned into some sort of sinkhole dropping straight down nearly ten feet. Max barely caught sight of the doe's tail before it disappeared down a tunnel in the earth.

" _Well, I'm already in this deep,_ " Max thought nervously, and hopped down into the pit. As she hit, her foot twisted, and she fell onto her side, " _Dammit,_ " she thought, holding her ankle, " _Fucking typical_ ," She slowly pushed herself up, and gingerly put weight on her foot. She knew how a twisted ankle felt, and expected the sharp sting of pain. When none came, she tried standing normally, " _One benefit of being in a crazy dream I guess_." Max shone her phone down the tunnel, and saw a huge gateway carved out of rock, leading even deeper.

"What the hell." Max said, and walked through the archway. Then, all of a sudden, a deafening roar erupted from all around her. Max now stood in the middle of the junkyard, American Rust. The wind screamed around her, the trees groaning, and she saw an enormous tornado ripping through Arcadia Bay.

"You failed, Max!" Max froze, the voice horribly familiar, striking at every nerve in her body. She slowly turned, and saw Mark Jefferson standing there, glasses cracked but gleaming, a crooked half smile on his face, "It was all for nothing, you couldn't save anyone. Not even your precious Chloe."

Max began backing away, her breath quickening, "No. No, this isn't real, it's a dream. I'm dreaming!"

Jefferson laughed, and it was then Max noticed he was standing right over where Rachel had been buried, "Come on, you're smarter than that." He slowly began advancing on her, hands in his pockets, looking like he hadn't a care in the world. But Max knew better, knew that beneath his charming demeanor was a reservoir of untapped rage. Suddenly she noticed that she had a gun clutched in one hand, and she lifted it to point straight at Jefferson.

"Stay back!" Max said shakily, "I'll shoot you, I swear I will."

Jefferson stopped, and scowled at her, "Empty threats don't become you Maxine. Though I have to say, I love to see how much of an effect I've had on you." He stopped and spread his arms wide, "So go ahead! What have I always told you? Always take the shot." He leered at Max, his face totally confident, "Kill me Max. Show me how corrupted you've become."

Max swallowed, her hand shaking. She still had the gun trained on Jefferson, but it was wavering more and more frequently. Faster than she would've thought possible, Jefferson was right in front of her, and he smacked the gun away from her, "So, so close." He scowled down at her, "Ah well, I guess I'll just have to break you a little harder this time." Max cowered, and Jefferson gripped her shoulder tightly, "Don't be scared Max. Time's on our side this time around."

She stared in horror at his eyes, which gleamed with malevolence. Looking closely, she saw Jefferson's glasses weren't actually cracked, but were reflecting his eyes, horrible, pure white, and broken, "What- What's wrong with your eyes?" Max stammered, and Jefferson let out a small laugh, "So observant, just like always. I really do like you Max. It's almost a shame that you're going to die." Just as he began to pull her closer, lightning flashed, thunder roared, and Max sat up in her bed.

"No..." She whispered, tears streaming down her face, "Please, not again." She pushed the covers off, and Chloe stirred, grumbling in irritation.

"Max, what're you doing, it's like..." She squinted at the clock, then flopped back into bed, "It's hella fucking early, what the fucking hell is wrong with you?" Max ignored her, and rushed out the door, heading straight for the living room, "The fuck is going on Max?" Chloe called, but Max continued ignoring her.

She grabbed the TV remote, and flicked through to the news, then stopped, and stared at the TV in horror, " _Oh God no. Please no._ "

Chloe wandered in, rubbing her eyes, "Max, did you drink like fifteen cups of coffee when I wasn't looking or something?" She followed Max's eyes, and her breath caught. "Shit."

"People as far as Portland are being asked to report any sightings of this man, Mark Jefferson to the police immediately. For those of you just joining us, in the destruction caused in Arcadia Bay by a large EF5 Tornado, this man, Mark Jefferson, who had been arrested by police, with his charges going from homicide to rape, has escaped and is currently on the run. He is assumed to be armed and dangerous. Do not approach him for any reason."

"I won't have to," Max said hollowly, "Jefferson will be coming after me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I said it in the summary, but PLOT TWIST! Jefferson's return is something I'm very excited about, though know up front I'll be using him sparingly. He's a tool that needs to be handled with care, or this story could very quickly become a horror story D: We've also the return of the doe, and of Joyce. I had originally planned on killing her, as that would be the most likely outcome Canonwise. However I also thought it would make Chloe way too messed up (As she's already pretty bad). I'd rather focus on other things since we've seen that in the game already. This also gets rid of at least one method Chloe has for guilt tripping Max, which she'll hopefully grow out of. Though who knows? (The answer is me, fyi. I like having the answers). Anyway, as you can see, my projected publish dates can be pretty off, so bear that in mind. I'm planning on having Chapter 5 take Chapter 4's deadline, though that one may take a little longer. I've had this chapter planned from the beginning, while the next one I have no idea what I'm going to go with yet. It'll either be short and early, or really long and late. Anyway, thanks for reading, and putting up with my really long ending notes. Just want you to have an idea what my thought process is. Talk to you again soon, dear readers...
> 
> P.S. I realize I'm saying this at the end of the fourth chapter. But. If you are so inclined you can skip these notes. Nothing essential will be mentioned other than my projected publish date for the next chapter. If it bores or annoys you don't read them! They'll all be like this. However, if they amuse you, do read them! Cause. Why not?


	5. Memorial

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! So this is a bit of a shorter chapter, which I'm sorry about, but it is by necessity. Couldn't work around it. It also required some research, which was interesting. Anyway, let's dive in!

"We've all lost friends. Family. Our homes." Seeing Sean Prescott standing up in front of the service brought on all sorts of emotions for Max, but the pit of fear in her stomach was the most distracting, "I myself have lost my son, a shining star taken before his time." Max stiffened, and unconsciously touched her throat, feeling the heat of Nathan's hand.

" _Nobody tells me what to do. Not my parents, not the principal, or that whore in the bathroom!_ "

"Max?" Chloe's hand touched her shoulder, and the memory broke like glass. Max massaged her temples.

"Sorry," Max whispered, "Just thinking,"

"Yeah I guessed." Chloe scowled slightly, "We're probably thinking the exact same thing. I mean, how doesn't the entire town know about how fucked up Nathan is?"

Max shrugged, "You said it yourself, the Prescotts basically own the police here."

She shivered as Jefferson's voice spoke from the back of her mind, " _I'm sorry that I killed- The Nathan killed her in self defense_ _._ "

"Jefferson won't be happy about that," she murmured to Chloe, who gave her a strange look.

Next to Chloe, Joyce made a shushing motion, and Max sat back in her seat. They'd only been there for two days, and already Joyce was being a mom again.

" _I guess I don't really mind, if it means she's alive_." Max thought. Nathan's father was finishing up his speech, making way for the next person on the schedule, Warren's mother Anna, " _Oh Warren... I'm so sorry, I thought I saved you..._ " Max had been crying throughout the service, as parents and friends of the dead made speeches one by one, " _There's so many of you..._ "

Max gazed at the mural of faces, despondent. Warren. Frank. Evan and Alyssa. Dana and Trevor had been out on a date, killed when a car had been thrown into them by the storm. Brooke had been out, probably searching for Warren. Max didn't know the details, but knew she had been impaled. Her eyes clouded, and she looked at the floor. There were more, so many more. All killed because of her.

" _You stupid bitch!"_ Jefferson roared in her face, needle poised above her. Max whimpered in fear, cowering away from him, " _You just don't listen, do you? In fact, you never did hear much in my class._ " He smiled down at her sardonically, " _If you had, you might have seen all this coming_."

Max's breathing quickened, the world blurring, and she was running, running away from Jefferson, from Nathan, from everything.

" _How?! How did you know that?!_ "

" _I just wanted to know if you'd like to spend the rest of your life in my Dark Room._ "

" _Stay still!_ "

" _You couldn't save anyone, not even your precious Chloe._ "

Max collapsed in a corner, chest heaving, wrapping her legs in her arms. She clamped her hands over her ears, but he was still there, insidiously leaking into her mind.

Max felt two hands on her shoulders, and she whimpered, hiding her face in her legs, hands tight over her ears. The grip loosened, and she felt an arm slide around her shoulders, gently rubbing her back. Max flinched away from the touch, breath shallow and rapid.

" _You can't blame all this on Nathan. I don't care what you do to me. You're gonna die motherfucker. For Chloe, and Rachel, and everybody else._ "

" _I do love your spirit, Max, but you brought yourself her, by your own choice._ "

"No!" Max sobbed, "No, I didn't!" The pressure around her shoulders was gone, but she could feel someone next to her. Jefferson? Max carefully peeked past her legs, and saw a flash of blue hair. Max blinked, her body still shaking badly.

" _What a waste of talent..._ " Jefferson's voice was softer now, fading away.

"He had me, Chloe," Max sobbed, "He had me, he killed you, you're dead!"

"No, it's okay, you saved me!" Chloe's voice was muffled, and intermingled with Jefferson, but grew clearer as his grew fainter. Finally, he was gone. Max slowly took her hands away from her ears, glancing around. She had run to some hallway, somewhere in the church. Chloe knelt next to her, carefully leaving a few inches between them.

Still shaking, Max collapsed into Chloe's lap, "What's wrong with me, Chloe?" Max said through her tears.

Chloe stroked Max's hair, "I dunno Max. I dunno. What happened? You just took off."

"He- He had me in the Dark Room, I saw him, I heard him-" Max rambled, her body beginning to shake more violently. She could feel her mind clouding over again as air left her faster and faster.

"Max, it's okay!" Chloe said, "You're safe, Jefferson isn't here."

"He was, I heard him Chloe!"

"Max, it was just a memory. Just a memory. We're at the Arcadia Bay Memorial, remember?" Max swallowed, and tried to breath regularly, "My mom, and your parents are both here too, okay? Do you want me to go get them?" Max shook her head rapidly, "Alright. That's okay. I'm gonna keep you safe, okay? If Jeffershit comes anywhere near you-"

"You're gonna punch him in the dick." Max laughed, then started hiccuping violently.

"Exactly." Chloe said firmly, "He doesn't get to do this to you and get away unpunished." Max carefully sat up, and with Chloe's help got to her feet, "You good to go rockstar?"

"I think so," Max said shakily, "Could- Could we sit in the back though? Just in case."

"Of course. Come on, let's go."

* * *

Chloe ignored the various murmurs coming from the people around her, and held tight to Max's hand. She listened absently as Max chatted with a brunette whose name started with an S. Sandra? Sarah?

"If you ever need any help with your family, let me know, okay Stella?" Max said, and dropped Chloe's hand to give the girl a hug.

" _Stella, got it_." Chloe thought, " _Fuck it, it's not like I'm going to see any of these people any time soon. At least I hope not_." Chloe hadn't talked to her mom about staying in Seattle yet, and just the thought of it sent her fingers tapping rapidly.

She jumped when Max's fingers slipped back into hers, and glanced down at their intertwined hands, " _What's this about anyway?_ " Chloe had noticed how touchy Max had been ever since the storm, but hadn't had the nerve to comment on it. She certainly wasn't going to complain, even if Max was just looking for some emotional support, " _Can't really blame her there._ "

"Hey, can we get out of here?" Max asked quietly, "I've seen everyone I need to, and-" She broke off, staring at something over Chloe's shoulder. Chloe glanced back, trying to figure out what she was looking at.

"Max, what's up?" Chloe nudged her lightly.

Max blinked, and looked away, "Nothing. Sorry, it's nothing. Thought I saw something." She gently pulled Chloe towards Joyce, "Come on, let's see if your mom's ready to go."

"Lead the way, Super Max."

Together, they weaved through the milling crowd, until they made it to Joyce. She was sitting out of the way, talking quietly into her phone.

"How long do you think he'll have to stay?" Joyce waved at the two girls, and held up a finger, "I understand. When would we be able to visit him? Great, thank you." She hung up, and sighed, "They think David will be in the hospital for two weeks at most. After that though..." Joyce shrugged, "Recovery can take a very long time."

"How long do they think?" Max asked nervously, gripping Chloe's hand tightly.

"Could be weeks. Could be years. He might never recover fully, an injury to the spine is just so damn tricky." Joyce rubbed her temples, "I'm just glad he's alive."

"Me too." Max said quietly, her hand clamping down on Chloe's.

"Yo Super Max, lose some of the super strength!" Chloe yelped.

"Sorry!" Max tried to let go completely, but Chloe held on anyway.

"It's fine, just a little looser would be nice. I generally would prefer not being crushed."

Joyce gave the two of them an odd look, then said, "Anyway, whenever you girls are ready, I'd like to go visit David. Take your time, we have plenty-"

"No, we're ready!" Max said quickly, "That's what we just came over to talk to you about."

"Great," Joyce said, and stood up from the bench, "To the car then."

"Shotgun!" Chloe said immediately.

"You're gonna stick me in the middle?" Max asked.

"That's what you get for being a munchkin!"

"I'm not that small!"

"Pretty soon you're gonna be singing about the Lollipop Guild."

"I'm ignoring you now."

Joyce sighed, and walked out the door, leaving the two girls to follow behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright. Not too much happened in this chapter other than our first real look at Max's PTSD, which I've researched pretty heavily. I want to show that as realistically as possible, as it is a huge deal. Also, I want to mention if you're struggling with any mental problem such as depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, or just you're feeling really down, don't be afraid to ask for help. It's been so heavily stigmatized, and it shouldn't be. Therapy can be very beneficial, even if you don't have any disorders, so please please ask for help if you need it. Anywho, I plan to come out with Chapter 6 sometime next week, and that deadline is probably going to be accurate for once. I have people asking to see some of my work, and as I don't know them well enough to show them fanfiction, I have to write something for a novel I've been working on for awhile, so I'll need a little extra time before I get back to Chloe and Max. Also, I'm not really sure where I'm going next, and I want to avoid lackluster chapters if I can, so I need to do a little more planning. So I'll be slowing the breakneck pace I've been publishing these to make sure my quality stays up. I will do my utmost to keep to at least one chapter a week however. That's all, thanks for reading folks!


	6. Forgiveness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! For once my prediction was pretty close! I'm much happier with this chapter, and I hope you are too. This chapter has both darker and lighter sections, so it should have something for everyone! I'm definitely enjoying writing the interactions between Max and Chloe. Anyway, more notes can be found at the end, so let's begin!

"I know you feel bad, so you should just tell him!"

"Yeah, and let him use it against me later? No thanks."

"Chloe, this is serious. You've both said some stupid stuff-"

"I didn't-"

"Yes, you did." Max gave Chloe a hard look, and Chloe looked at her feet.

"Fine." She muttered, "So he's not a complete douche. He saved you. That doesn't make all the other shit he did go away."

"Of course not." Max said quietly, and tilted Chloe's head up so she was looking into her eyes, "But both of you regret how your relationship has gone, I know that. So this is your chance to start fixing things."

"Why is this my responsibility?" Chloe complained, "If he would just stop being a dick-"

"Chloe!"

"Alright, alright." Chloe grumbled, "I'll apologize. Happy?"

Max wrapped her in a tight hug, "Yes. Thank you, Che. It'll mean so much to David, and to Joyce." Chloe bit her lip, and hugged her back.

" _Damn, I really like that nickname way too much._ " She thought, and hugged Max tighter. They just stood that way for a minute, neither wanting to let go.

The door opened, and they jumped apart, Chloe blushing slightly, " _What the hell, it's not like we were making out or anything. Jeez, I need to stop overthinking this_."

Joyce gave the girls a long look, then said, "You can come in and see him now." She held the door open, and Chloe eyed it reluctantly.

"Come on, nerd." Max said, and pulled Chloe inside. When she saw David, she stopped, and looked away almost immediately. He had a large neck brace, several IVs, tubes, and various other machinery hooked up to him.

" _How am I supposed to apologize for this?_ " Chloe thought, " _He's an asshole, but he didn't deserve this_." She glanced at Max for support, but found her pale as a sheet, tremors running through her. Without saying a word Chloe took her hand, and together they approached David's bed.

"Hey kids," David gave them a forced smile, a look so foreign that Chloe almost recoiled, "I- I was glad to hear you two were okay."

"I'm so sorry David..." Max whispered, "I never wanted this to happen to you."

David coughed harshly, and grimaced, "Me neither, believe me. Who'd have thought that what takes me down is an old barn, huh? If anything was gonna kill me, I would have put my money on that psychopath Jefferson." Max clamped down on Chloe's hand, and Chloe tried to tell David to shut up with her eyes, but he wasn't looking at her, "I wish I'd been at the station, I would've made sure that fucker didn't escape."

"We know," Chloe said quickly, trying to change the subject, "But if you'd been there you'd probably be dead."

"Yeah, I suppose." David frowned, "I suppose I should consider myself lucky." He let out a grim chuckle, "I guess we'll have to wait and see."

Chloe stood by the bed awkwardly, trying to think of what she was going to say. Max glanced at her, and turned to Joyce, who sat near the door, "Hey Joyce, could I talk to you in the hall for a minute?"

"Yeah, sure honey." Joyce glanced nervously between Chloe and David, but slipped out the door.

Max nudged Chloe is the ribs and gave her a look, " _Go on._ "

Chloe rolled her eyes, " _Yeah, yeah. Fine_." Max gave her a reassuring smile, then followed Joyce into the hall. As soon as she was gone Chloe's fingers began tapping on her leg, " _Fuck, I wish I high off my ass right now. I badly need to get some weed._ " She opened then closed her mouth several times in quick succession.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" David asked gruffly. Chloe suppressed the urge to punch him

"Nothing!" She said irritably, "I'm trying to-" She broke off, digging her nails into her palms, "Look, David, I've been- Well, a bit of an asshole to you ever since you and Mom-" Chloe ran her hands through her hair, and let out a huff of air, "I'm not saying I forgive you for being a dick to me. But I'm sorry I didn't give you a chance in the beginning. Or ever. And just kinda being an all-around bitch." Chloe laughed humorlessly, "I guess I didn't really give you much of a choice about being a douche to me, did I?"

David eyed her warily, "Max put you up to this?"

"Only like 60%." Chloe said, then bit her tongue before she said anything worse.

David chuckled, "At least you're honest." He shifted position slightly in bed, "Chloe, I'm sorry too. I know I've crossed way too many lines, and I'm not asking you to forgive that. We've both done some asinine things, so let's just call it even, and start over."

Chloe sighed, and nodded halfheartedly, "I- I guess. You were pretty cool with believing us about Jefferson. I suppose we can give it a shot."

"Neither of us really believes the bullshit we're saying do we?"

Chloe let out a surprised laugh, "Nope."

David closed his eyes briefly, and Chloe could almost see the wheels turning in his head, "Chloe, I think we can both agree that we both love your mother, right?" Chloe nodded reluctantly. As much as she didn't like it, he had proven that much, "I think we owe it to Joyce to be better. So maybe we can't start over, but we still can try to get better."

Chloe swallowed hard, "Yeah, sure. Whatever."

"Believe me, I'm as uncomfortable right now as you are."

"I doubt that." They stood and sat in awkward silence for a moment, before Chloe gestured behind her, "I'm gonna tell them to come back in now, if that's okay." Without waiting for an answer she scurried over to the door, and flung it open, "You guys can come in now." She said, and made sure they were through the door before she sat herself as far away from David as possible. Max gave her a questioning look, and Chloe just shrugged.

"So, what's your plan now?" David asked, breaking the silence.

Joyce sighed, and glanced at the girls, "I've got a hotel room reserved near the hospital until they figure out how bad the house is. After that..."

"Um, Mom?" Chloe asked suddenly, "Max and I were thinking that I might stay with her for a little while."

Joyce nodded, looking unsurprised, "How long were you thinking?"

"Oh, you know..." Chloe said uncomfortably, "Till June."

"What!" Joyce said, "Why on Earth-"

"Mom, wait, let me explain!" Chloe said quickly. Joyce settled back into her seat with a scowl, but motioned for her to continue, "With Blackwell as damaged as it is, Max has to go back to Seattle, and neither of us wants to be separated right now. She's going to go back to her old school, and I- I'd like to go too."

"You want to go back to school?" Joyce said, her surprise growing.

"And get the chance to go to school with Max for another year? Hell yeah!" Chloe said defiantly, "We both get what we want here. I'd finish school like you wanted, but I also get to stay with my best friend."

Joyce frowned, but Chloe could see she was considering it. Chloe bounced in her chair excitedly as Joyce said, "You and Max head into the hall for a second, I want to talk about this with David."

"But Mom, he's-" Chloe was cut off by both a sharp look from her mother and an elbow in the stomach from Max, "Fine, fine." Together, she and Max slipped into the hall.

"How'd your talk with David go?" Max asked, leaning on the wall by the door.

"They're in there deciding our fate and that's what you want to talk about?"

"Yes, that is why I asked."

"Smartass."

Max smacked her arm, "Don't try to dodge the question, Chloe! How'd it go?"

Chloe sighed, "I mean, better than I expected. I dunno. I don't really trust him."

"It's not about trusting him." Max said, "It's about a truce. Yeah, David can be a dick at times, but-"

"Yeah, yeah, I get it." Chloe began pacing nervously, "What're we going to do if they say no?"

Max ran a hand through her hair, and shrugged, "I've got no idea. Chloe I- I don't know if I can-" She broke off, and looked down at the ground. Chloe wrapped her in a tight hug, and she felt Max bury her face in Chloe's shoulder.

"We'll figure it out, alright?" Chloe said softly, "No way in hell am I letting you go again." The two girls separated, and Max wiped her eyes.

"Thanks, Che," Max sniffed, "I dunno what I'd do without you."

"Yeah, you'd be pretty fucked without me, huh?" Chloe joked, ignoring the heat that had risen in her cheeks.

"Chloe, are you blushing?" Max asked, a smile forming.

"No!" Chloe blanched, which only made her blush more.

Max nudged her shoulder, "You are, why are you blushing you dork?"

"I'm not blushing!"

Max bit her bottom lip, and looked at her thoughtfully, "You really like it when I call you Che don't you?" Chloe tried to make a dismissive noise, but it came out as a splutter, "You are, that is so fucking cute!"

"You're crazy." Chloe muttered, trying to will her blush away. She was unsuccessful.

"Well, _Che_ ," Max said deliberately, "if I am crazy, then I guess I'm-" She broke off, and Chloe glanced at her. Max's cheeks were now bright red, and she looked like she was biting her tongue.

"What?" Chloe asked.

"Nothing! Forget it."

"Oh come on, you have to tell me now." Chloe pushed, relieved the topic of conversation was no longer her, "If you're crazy then you're..."

"It doesn't matter!" Max said, her face turning crimson.

Chloe grinned, and put a hand on her hip, " _Was she going to flirt with me? No way, no fucking way._ "

Before Chloe could push her for answers the door swung open, and Joyce stuck her head out, "You can come back in now girls."

"Saved by the bell," Chloe said, and Max rushed inside, her face flaming. Still grinning, Chloe followed her.

"What did you say to her now, Chloe?" Joyce asked, sounding faintly amused.

"I didn't say anything!" Chloe said truthfully, "She stopped talking and turned into a tomato all of a sudden."

"I'm not a tomato..." Max muttered, despite the evidence.

"So," Chloe hopped up to sit on the counter, "What's the verdict, judge?"

"Get off the counter!" Joyce scolded, and Chloe raised her hands defensively, and leaned next to Max instead, "David and I talked it over, and while I'm concerned you'll be as irresponsible with Max, if not more, you're also an adult." Chloe's heart rate doubled, and fingers began tapping excitedly on her leg, "If you promise to actually try to do well in school-" Chloe tackled her mother in a hug, cutting her off.

"Thank you!" She said, then awkwardly broke away, "Um, sorry. That was weird. Sorry." She felt Max grab her hand, and leaned back against the wall.

"Anyway," Joyce said, "If you promise to actually try at school, and be a responsible adult, then yes. It's alright with me. You'll have to ask Mr. and Mrs. Caulfield of course, but I think this could be good for you." She smiled at Max, "Max could be a good influence on you, and I think it's important you finish your high school education."

Chloe couldn't stop grinning, " _It's happening. It's actually happening._ " She squeezed down on Max's hand excitedly, " _I'm not letting you get away again, Super Max_."

* * *

"Alfred Hitchcock famously called film, 'little pieces of time'. But he could be talking about photography, as he likely was." Max shivered, and looked around the classroom. She used to love listening to him talk. Now it felt like ice creeping down her spine.

" _What the hell is going on, why am I back here?_ " Max thought, her hands shaking.

"These pieces of time can frame us in our glory, and our sorrow," Jefferson rose from the desk, and began pacing back and forth. While his eyes never landed on her, Max knew he was keenly aware of her. He always was, "From light to shadow; from color to chiaroscuro. Now, can you give me an example of a photographer who perfectly captured the human condition in black and white? Anybody? Bueller?"

"Diane Arbus." Max's head jerked, and she saw Victoria lounging in her chair, looking particularly attentive. Max had almost forgotten there was anyone else in the room, it hadn't seemed important.

"There you go Victoria!" Jefferson said, as Max pushed back tears, "Why Arbus?"

" _This can't be real; I can't be back here._ " Max thought desperately, " _Not again._ "

"Because of her images of hopeless faces." Victoria said, her voice sickly sweet, "You feel like, totally haunted by the eyes of those sad mothers and children."

"She saw humanity as tortured, right? And frankly, it's bullshit." The class tittered, and Max shuddered, "Shh, keep that to yourself. Seriously though, I could frame any one of you in a dark corner, and capture you in a moment of desperation." He walked over, and leaned on Max's desk, his face inches from hers, "Isn't that right, Max?"

"Get away from me!" Max screamed, and scrambled backward. Her chair tipped, back, and she was falling, falling for far too long.

Max stood in front of a familiar stone tower, surrounded by forest. Max's breathing slowed, and she looked around for Jefferson. The only things she saw were graves, trees, and the spectral doe once more.

" _I'm dreaming._ " Max thought numbly, " _I have to be_ ," she considered wandering around the graveyard, but then she looked at the doe again. It watched her intently, then vanished through the iron door, " _It hasn't led me wrong yet,_ " Max thought, and followed it.

She opened the door, and at the last second tried thought to prop it open. She glanced around, and grabbed a stick, and placed in the crack between door and wall. Now a thin stream of sunlight illuminated the sinkhole in the center of the mausoleum, barely reaching the bottom. Max leapt down, and pulled out her phone, flicking on the flashlight. The doe glanced back at her, then padded forward, disappearing into the darkness beyond the arch.

" _Last time I went through there, I had a vision of Jefferson,_ " Max thought, and glanced around, looking for any other exits. She carefully examined the dirt walls, noticing that they were smooth, feeling almost like stone, " _Weird_ ," she thought, then moved closer to the arch.

It was made of what looked almost like marble, and stretched nearly ten feet high. Careful not to cross under it, Max touched the stone, and frowned. The arch was smooth, feeling more like metal. Looking more closely, she saw that the archway had a sort of sheen to it, similar to glass, " _What the hell is this?_ " Max thought, and took a deep breath. Then she stepped through the gateway.

Lightning flashed, and Max jumped as the wind roared into being. She glanced around and saw the tornado once again, " _Oh no, not again!_ " She thought desperately.

"Max!" Max spun around, and saw Chloe, looking ragged and scarred, crouching behind the bench, "Come on dude, you gotta get out of here!"

"What?" Max asked, her head reeling.

"We've got to end this!" Chloe shouted over the wind, "We're so close." When Max just stared at her, Chloe stood up and hurried over to her, "I know, I'm scared too. But you can do this, I believe in you."

"Do what?" Max asked frantically, "Chloe, what the fuck is going on?" Chloe said something, but her voice was drowned out by a boom of thunder. Before Max could stop her, Chloe turned and raced off down the hill, "Chloe, come back!"

She glanced back, "I'll see you after, I promise. I love you Max."

"Chloe!" Max ran after her, but a roar drew her to a halt. She whipped around, and saw that the tornado had changed course, and was ripping the lighthouse apart. If she didn't move now, she would be dead. Max turned to run, and instead sat up in bed.

"No, not again, it can't happen again," Max sobbed, her legs coming up to her chest. She heard a grunt from under the covers next to her, but ignored it. Her entire body shook, and her hands gripped the blankets like claws.

"Max, what's going on?" Chloe grumbled, pushing the covers off of her, "It's one in the goddamn morning."

"Chloe, it's going to happen again, the storm, all of it-"

"Max?" Joyce's voice came from the next bed, and Max glanced over at her. Joyce had turned on a lamp, and was looking over groggily.

"Max just had a nightmare I think," said Chloe, getting out of bed, "Here, we'll head out of the room, let you sleep."

"Alright. You sure you're okay dear?" Joyce asked.

"Uh, yeah." Max said shakily, and followed Chloe, "I'll be fine Joyce, thanks." They slipped outside of the motel room, and stood together in the cold October air.

Chloe turned to her, "Max, what the fuck is going on?"

"I had another one of my visions. The tornado, it's going to come back." Her words were rushed, but Max did her best to tell Chloe everything that happened.

"Shit," Chloe said, and rubbed her face, "Goddammit, you've got to be joking. It was all for nothing? All of those people, they died for nothing?"

Tears threatened to start pouring down her cheeks, but Max resisted, "I don't know. It- It didn't feel quite like my other visions. It was like the one with Jefferson, but it was you instead."

Chloe took a deep breath, "You never had one of your original visions while you were sleeping did you?" Max thought for a moment, then shook her head, "You- You don't think it could've just been a dream do you?"

"I'd never even thought of that." Max said slowly, "I guess it's possible. It felt different from my tornado vision, but it didn't feel like a dream either."

"Damn dude, you're shaking like a leaf," Chloe said, and wrapped Max in a hug, and Max finally broke down completely.

"I want him out of my head, Che," she sobbed, shoulders heaving, "I want him gone, I want him out."

Chloe's grip on her tightened, "I know Max." She felt Chloe kiss her forehead, and Max began to cry even more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry to end on a darker note, but that's where the chapter took me! I have a better idea where this next one is going (Back to Seattle by the way), so hopefully I can get it out earlier than next week. I have a lighter homework load this week so it's possible. I enjoy writing the dream sequences, though whether or not they're "future visions" or not you'll have to find out for yourself ;) The really heavy stuff is gonna keep coming for Max and Chloe, but we're almost to... "The Talk". THAT will be fun for me. Anyway, I have to get this posted on two sites, so I'll leave it there for now. I will have my next chapter out by next Monday at the latest, but hopefully it will be sooner. Thanks for reading, and please review if you're so inclined! If you have some constructive criticism I would love to hear it. :) Thanks folks!


	7. Symbolic Eggs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey folks! Sorry this update took so long, Not only did I get super busy, but I also had a lot of trouble with the second half of this chapter. I felt like I was getting repetitive, and wanted to get this right. Well, right it is! I'm pretty happy with it, and I hope you will be too. Without further ado, let's begin!

Chloe gazed up at the ceiling, her eyes having long adjusted to the dark. Her hand groped for her phone, then squinted when the light blistered her eyes, "Like the fucking sun," Chloe muttered grumpily, but making sure not to wake Max. She turned down the brightness, and checked the time: 4:30, "Fucking typical." Chloe said, and tossed her phone next to her air mattress.

Chloe looked over to the bed, and saw Max's small body, stirring restlessly. " _Little smartass wanted me to have the bed. Like I was going to let that happen._ " Convincing Max's parents to let them share a room had been easier than Chloe had expected. For that matter, having Chloe as their yearlong house guest had been easy too. " _Though the longer we stay here, the harder Vanessa is going to push about what really happened with Jefferson_ ," Chloe thought, and rolled over onto her side. She glanced back at the bed, and bit her lip, " _God, I wish that was big enough for two._ " They had tried sharing it the first night, but had quickly found out that one of them would end up with a rude awakening on the floor.

Max muttered quietly in her sleep, and Chloe watcher her worriedly. " _Her nightmares are not getting any better._ " Chloe thought, " _What if we sacrificed Arcadia Bay for nothing?_ " She punched her pillow in frustration, " _I should have just jumped off that cliff. Forced Max to save everyone._ "

Max cried out, and sat up like she had been struck by lightning. Instantly, Chloe was next to her, sitting on the edge of the bed, "Hey, it's okay." She said quietly, remembering not to touch Max yet, "It's over, you're safe."

"No!" Max sobbed, "He's here, Chloe, he's coming!" Her entire body was shaking, and her hands gripped the bed sheets, pulling them off the mattress, "He had me in the Dark Room, he said-"

"Max, breathe for me." Chloe said firmly, "You were having a nightmare, okay? It's over. We're in Seattle now, Jeffershit is probably still back in Oregon." Chloe held out her hand, looking for permission. When Max didn't flinch away, Chloe slipped an arm around her.

"Chloe..." Max whimpered, and buried her head in Chloe's shoulder.

" _Fuck, I have no idea how I'm supposed to help you Super Max._ " Chloe thought, " _You're normally the one helping me._ "

"What do I do Chloe?" Max said shakily into Chloe's shoulder, "Why is he stuck in my head?"

"Hell if I know," Chloe said, "But I am going to kill him for this."

Max balked, and began to shake even worse, "No, you can't go near him! Chloe, he'll kill you again, I can't lose you, not again."

"Okay, okay, I'm not gonna die." Chloe said, alarmed, "I'm not leaving you, okay? Not ever."

"You wanted to though!" Max said, her voice heavy with emotion, "At the lighthouse, you wanted to die, I thought I was going to lose you!"

Chloe looked at her feet, "I know. I'm sorry, I just wanted to help. I just-"

"Well it wouldn't help me!" Max said, sitting back so she could look Chloe in the eyes, "After everything Jefferson- After everything-" Max's voice broke, but she pushed on, "After everything that happened, I wasn't going to lose you too."

"Max-"

"I know, I know I'm being stupid," Max sighed, wiping her eyes with a trembling hand, "I just-" She began to shake more violently, but pressed on, "I just saw him kill you again. Before I even could-" Max dissolved into tears again, and collapsed into Chloe's lap. Chloe held her close, gently stroking her hair.

" _Max what is going on with you?_ " Chloe thought, and, without thinking, pressed her lips to Max's forehead. Max froze, tears still streaming down her face, then hugged Chloe tight around the middle, " _Oh shit,_ " Chloe thought, " _Oh fuck, I should not have done that._ "

"Max, I-" Max shook her head, and held onto Chloe tighter

"Not now, okay?" She said, her voice muffled, "Let's talk about it later."

"But-"

"Please Chloe, I just- I can't right now, I can't." Max said, her shoulders shaking.

"Alright." Chloe said reluctantly, "Later."

* * *

Max fidgeted nervously with her fork, staring suspiciously at the yellow and brown mass set before her.

"Come on, Maxaroni, eat up!" Chloe said cheerfully, waving a whisk like a baton.

"I didn't know you knew how to make scrambled eggs." Max muttered, poking at the meal on her plate.

"I don't," Chloe leaned on the table in front of her, and flashed a smile, "Didn't seem that hard, so I decided to try it. We don't have Joyce's cooking anymore, and all you can make is cereal. My turn!"

"I dunno, Chlo, I'm not really-"

Chloe pointed the whisk threateningly at Max, "Are you trying to get out of eating my eggs, Caulfield?" Max wiped something off her face that came from the whisk, and gave Chloe a dirty look, which she ignored, "Come on, you're fighting off Jeffershit every night, and you're scared of some bad eggs?"

Max tensed, and her fork clattered against her plate as her hands started shaking.

" _Stupid bitch!_ " Max flinched away, eyes half closed against the bright studio lights. She whimpered quietly, fighting the lethargy, the drugs coursing through her system.

" _They're wearing off..._ " Max thought weakly, " _I just have to... Stay strong..._ "

"You just don't listen, do you?" Jefferson asked, a hard edge to his voice, "In fact, you never did hear much in my class." He smiled down at her sardonically, "If you had, you might have seen all this coming." He knelt down, and Max tried to push herself away from him, but couldn't conjure the effort, "Goddamn, you are a fighter though. I've had my eye on you, and I've noticed you've been more fearless this week than maybe your whole life."

Jefferson held up the needle to the light, and it flashed into Max's eyes, "No..." Even the one word took up nearly all of her strength.

"Remember my number one rule: Always take the shot." Jefferson leaned forward, and grabbed her hair, pulling her head back gently. Max struggled, kicking against the duct tape, trying anything to get free. Then she felt a sharp sting in the side of her neck, and everything went black.

Max woke on the floor, and felt someone stroking her hair. She jerked away, expecting to see Jefferson grinning behind her.

"Max, it's me! It's just me." Chloe said, holding her hands up, and watching her with concerned eyes. Max stared at her uncomprehendingly, still poised to stand and flee, "It's alright, you're safe. You were in another flashback, you're safe now."

Max warily glanced around, looking for any sign of Jefferson, or the Dark Room. All she saw was her kitchen, chairs, table, counter. The smell of overcooked egg. Max's shoulders slowly fell, her breathing returning to normal, "Damnit," She muttered, "How long this time?"

"Just a minute or two." Chloe offered a hand, and Max hesitantly took it, and Chloe pulled her to her feet, "You okay?" Max squeezed Chloe's hand tightly, "Stupid question. Here, have some food. Maybe that will help.

Without thinking, Max reached over, and put a forkful of eggs in her mouth. Instantly, her eyes started watering, and it took all of her self-control not to cough the eggs back up. After she swallowed painfully, she said, "What the fuck did you do to these eggs?"

"I dunno!" Chloe said defensively, "I threw them on the stove, and I know you like cheese and salt so I put some of them in, and whisked it all together-"

"Chloe that's not how you make eggs!" Max said incredulously, "How did you have Joyce as a mom, and lived for eighteen years and think that's how you make eggs? How did you even get them to look anywhere near normal?" The two girls stared at each other for a moment, then both of them burst out laughing. Max was still shaking, and felt like she wanted to throw up, her head spinning, but somehow she was laughing. Max tackled Chloe in a hug, and buried her face in her shoulder.

"We'll stick to your cereal then, huh?" Chloe muttered, sounding almost sheepish.

"Thank you, Che..." Max murmured quietly, and Chloe pulled back and looked at her, confused.

"For what, terrible eggs?"

Max shook her head, choking back laughter and tears, "No, for being here for me. Every night, every day. For helping me through whatever the hell this is. And, yeah, for making me terrible eggs."

Chloe bit her lip, and smiled, "What else would I do? We're best friends, dork." She pulled out a chair and flopped into it, putting her feet up on the table, "You up to getting us some cereal, or should I?"

"I got it." Max went over to the cupboard, and grabbed the Cheerios. Her hands were still trembling, but Max managed to pour out two bowls before nearly dropping the box, "Hey, Chloe, could you-"

"I got you, Super Max." Chloe hopped up, and snatched away the cereal, "Should've done this in the first place." She pointed toward the table, "Go sit, Chef Chloe has got this."

"Chef Chloe nearly poisoned me with scrambled eggs," Max muttered, but didn't argue. She focused on breathing instead, and carefully set herself in the chair Chloe had vacated.

"Here we go, Cheerios with skim for the healthy heroine, and 2% for her sexy sidekick." Chloe grinned at her, and Max blushed.

" _Damn right._ " Max thought, before blushing even more.

"Chloe, how am I supposed to function like this? We go back to school tomorrow?" Max said, changing the subject.

Chloe sighed, and began eating her Cheerios, "I dunno man. That reminds me," Chloe shifted in her seat, looking awkward, "I know it's not my forte, but I did some research."

"Maybe I should start calling you Sherlock," Max said through a mouthful of cereal.

Chloe flipped her off, then continued, "You've been freaking me out dude, alright! I haven't had any idea how to help you, and I thought, you know, might as well try it."

Max smiled slightly, "Chloe Price, asking for help that's a first." Chloe lobbed a Cheerio at her, and Max ducked, grinning, "What'd you find, Doctor Chloe?"

Chloe bit the inside of her cheek and began bouncing her leg, "A lot of the stuff you've been going through, the flashbacks, nightmares, paranoia, shit like that-"

"Checks on all boxes," Max said grimly.

"Well, after what you went through with Jeffershit, I'm wondering if you're having some PTSD reaction or something?"

Max froze, and tried to remember to keep breathing, "I wasn't in a war though, I don't- I couldn't-" Chloe reached a hand across the table, and Max shakily took it.

"What you went through was fucking terrifying. And I know that idea is really fucking scary, but I'm not even sure yet. We both know I'm shit at researching, or making connections. You were the one who figured out where Nathan was going. So let's go all Sherlock and Watson, and figure out what's going on with you. It's just a place to start, okay?" Max nodded, but she couldn't stop herself from shaking. Chloe squeezed her hand, then leaned back into her chair, "I'm gonna need your intellect on this one, cause my best advice would be to get you high. Not that Miss Moral Max would do anything that illegal," Chloe gave her a wink, then went back to her cereal.

Max debated for a second, then said, "You do know that marijuana is legal in Washington, right?"

Chloe froze with her spoon halfway to her mouth, "What?"

"Marijuana got legalized here late last year, it was a huge deal."

"You're fucking with me."

"Nope."

"Seriously, you're fucking with me."

Max laughed, "No, I'm not Chloe! December of 2012, weed got legalized. You've gotta be eighteen, and there's a few other laws, but-" Chloe began rapidly shoveling down Cheerios, "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Wolf those down!" Chloe ordered, pointing at Max's cereal with her spoon, "We're going on a fieldtrip."

"Wait, now?"

"Fuck yeah!" Chloe shouted, and Max flinched, "Sorry." Chloe grabbed her phone from her pocket, "SIRI, where's the nearest marijuana joint?"

"Chloe, you don't have an iPhone."

"I don't give a fuck; I can get high without anyone arresting me!" Chloe pushed herself away from the table, and sprung up, "Come on, Caulfield, let's go!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, this next chapter is gonna be a little funky, deadline wise. I'm currently at a writing seminar, which does mean I will be starting Chapter 8 right now, however my weekend is crazy busy. I have multiple appointments, possibly having a lunch with my girlfriend's mother, and am seeing several of the Harry Potter movies in the theaters, plus homework. So while I hope to finish Chapter 8, I make no promises. I will get it done as soon as possible however, as I am excited to get back to this story. I always hate when I don't have time to write. Anyway, I've gotta go, get to work on Chapter 8! Hope you enjoyed it, leave reviews/comments, and have a great day!


	8. Drowning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, it has been a long time, hasn't it? My life has gotten a little crazy since I last was here, but I have returned at long last! This is a short chapter, as I couldn't really see where else the break would happen. I will have some notes at the end, as usual, so I'll leave most of my talking for there. Thanks for reading, and I hope you like it!

Chloe barged through the door, sauntered through the door, and collapsed onto the Price’s couch headfirst. She let out a groan of frustration into a threadbare pillow, ignoring the sounds of Max closing the door behind her.

“Still pouting?” Max’s voice grew closer as she followed Chloe.

“Two fucking years?” Chloe shouted into the pillow, then flipped herself over, and saw Max grinning at her, “I don’t want to wait two years to get high legally. Do you know how long it took me to find Frank?”

“Wasn’t it like a month after I left?”

“Three! And I at least knew people back in Arcadia, how am I going to find somewhere here?”  
Max looked like she was holding back a laugh, “Chloe, this is Seattle. I really don’t think it will be that hard. And as long as you don’t smoke in the house, my parents probably won’t care.”

Chloe groaned again, burying her face in the pillow, “Why did you get the cool parents when I needed them?”

She felt Max lift her feet up, and the couch sunk a little as she sat down, “I think my parents wanted me to party more than I did.” Chloe could hear the smile in Max’s voice, and hid further in the pillow, not wanting Max to see her grin, “Besides, Joyce is awesome.” Chloe made an incomprehensible noise. Max nudged her leg, “Hey, cheer up. We’re here, that’s enough to be grateful for, yeah?”

“Yeah, I guess.” Chloe said, pushing herself up, “What now, Caulfield?” Chloe looked at Max, and frowned. Max was looking down at her shoes, biting her lip hard, “What’s with the face?”

“It’s-” Max glanced at Chloe, then swallowed, “We’re here, but not- Not everyone made it out of there, did they?”

“ _ Fuck. _ ” Chloe scooted closer to Max, and threw an arm around her shoulders, “Come on Max, let’s go figure out what we need for tomorrow.”

Max let out a quick laugh, wiping her eyes, “You want to think about school?”

“God no, but it's better than sitting here moping some more, yeah?” Chloe shot up, and pulled Max to her feet, “Let’s go Supergirl, show me all the nerdy shit I’m sure you have around here.”

Max didn’t look at her, grabbing one arm, but holding Chloe’s hand in the other, “How do you stay so positive? I just. I can’t get my mind off of all it, you know?”

Chloe swallowed, and squeezed her hand, “Why do you give me all the hard questions?” Max didn’t laugh. Chloe bit the inside of her cheek, then bent down to force Max to look her in the eyes, “I know it’s important to talk about this shit, but if you think about it non-stop.” Chloe stopped, her voice catching in her throat, “It drowns you.” Max squeezed her hand, and opened her mouth to say something, “I’m fine. I’m helping you, I’m fine.” Chloe choked out, but Max ignored her, and hugged her tight.

“We’re both allowed to feel like shit, okay?” Max whispered in her ear, “We help each other, no matter what, yeah?”

“Yeah.” Chloe tried to blink back her tears, but was not as successful as she would have liked. Instead she just held on as tight as she could.

Chloe wasn’t sure how long it took them to break away, but it felt like it was way too soon. Chloe looked down, pretending to dust off her jeans, waiting for the tears to fade from her eyes. She was acutely aware that neither of them had let go of each other’s hands. 

“Come on, Che,” Max smiled quietly at her, and pulled her away from the couch, “I’m sure I’ve got all sorts of nerdy stuff around here.”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO, I was originally thinking of actually going through and doing an edited version of this as OH DEAR there are so many inconsistencies. However, I am going to treat this as a first draft. When I eventually finish it, then I will edit it and re-release. That means more new content! Always a good thing. Anyway, no idea how often I will be updating as my life is a little weird right now, we will see! Hoped you enjoyed this even though it was short, thanks for reading! If you have reviews or comments, please let me know!
> 
> See you folks later!
> 
> EDIT: I'm going to be posting production updates to my tumblr at stormhaven13.tumblr.com (along with other things I normally post) if you want to follow, feel free.


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